A guest blog post by Beth Rush, the mindfulness editor at Body+Mind.
Going back to school after a long summer vacation can be an exciting but stressful time for K-12 students. Hunger should be the last thing your children should worry about to help them adjust physically, mentally and academically. Consider these seven healthy back-to-school snacks for kids to keep their bellies full, taste buds delighted and bodies nourished.
- Mixed Berries
Berries are tasty superfoods, which is why they’re a low-hanging fruit. They’re rich in antioxidants — molecules that neutralize the unstable cell-damaging atoms linked to premature aging and chronic diseases called free radicals. Berry seeds contain bountiful omega-3 fatty acids, making them as nutritionally vital as the flesh.
The darker the fruit’s pigment, the healthier it is. Aside from color, freshness is crucial when packing berries for your little ones. You can get super fresh fruit at local farmers markets. However, you should move fast because they disappear from stalls as fall rolls around.
Your safest bet is blackberries because late summer coincides with their harvest season. Mix them with grapes for variety, which botanically belong to the berry basket. Grapes have high concentrations of vitamins and minerals and are good for the teeth.
Adding fruit to your children’s diet can be tricky, especially if you’re not a big berry eater. Eating the rainbow starts at home.
- Honey-Drizzled Yogurt
Yogurt is a nutrition superstar you should feed your young learners with. This fermented product has live bacteria that aid digestion, such as lactobacillus bulgaricus and streptococcus thermophilus. Although it’s dairy, it’s safe for lactose-intolerant kids.
Plain yogurt is the healthiest but not the tastiest. Sweeten it with honey to make it more palatable to your children. Mix this snack with fruits and nuts to enhance its flavor and texture.
- Hyperseeded Granola Bars
Granola bars are healthy back-to-school snacks for kids — even for menopausal mothers — who need to refuel between snacks. The beauty of granola is that it lends itself to customization. Rolled oats, dried fruit, nuts, seeds and sweeteners are its base ingredients. However, you decide on the specifics to make them as healthy as you want.
Many recipes recommend mixing oats, dates, almonds, honey and pumpkin seeds. More seeds can be better than one variety, so include them to elevate your granola’s nutritional value. Chia, flax, hemp and sunflower seeds are solid choices.
- Lean Sloppy Joe Sliders
Ground turkey turns sloppy Joes from guilty pleasures to healthy back-to-school snacks for kids. Turkey meat has a 93-to-7 lean-to-fat ratio and 0.8 grams less saturated fat than standard ground beef, making the former an excellent substitute protein to lower children’s fat intake.
Round out your ingredients with avocado or olive oil, yellow onion, fresh minced garlic, and yellow, orange, red or green bell peppers. Consider adding sweet potatoes to level up the dish’s flavor profile and nutritional value.
- Italian-Style Pizza Kits
Pizza is an easy sell. It gets a bad rap as a source of empty calories because most view it as a fast-food favorite. However, this dish becomes a wholesome snack when you prepare it the Italian way.
Authentic pizzas are much healthier than the modern versions served in the United States. Italians use fresh cheeses, nonfrozen toppers and olive oil. When adding meat to make it savory, use less fatty cuts. You can also make healthier dough by using vegetables like cauliflower. One head of cauliflower yields eight mini pizza crusts, making them perfect for sharing and keeping portions small but filling.
Pizza kits require preparation — a feature, not a bug. Letting your school-age kids assemble their snacks with friends is a tool for socialization and a fun bonding experience.
- Air-Fried Sweet Potato French Fries
Although french fries are good for the soul, they can be detrimental to your children’s development over the long term. Swapping sweet potatoes for potatoes instantly makes them healthier back-to-school snacks for kids. These starchy vegetables have a great surface area, allowing you to make wedges, crinkle-cut pieces and waffle cuts out of them.
Sweet potato fries provide more energy and are more nutrient-dense. However, deep-frying them can offset their increased nutritional value. Alternatively, air-fry the sweet potatoes. Using an air fryer increases the amount of slowly digestible starch while reducing the resistant starch in french fries, resulting in more balanced post-consumption blood sugar levels.
- Baked Kale Chips
Kale is a leafy veggie your children should include in their diets. It’s an abundant low-calorie source of essential vitamins, calcium, iron and manganese.
Convincing your kids to eat their greens can be a tall order, especially when they’re at school and you can’t supervise them. Fortunately, you can make kale appetizing by seasoning it with garlic powder and salt. Tear it into pieces and bake them in olive oil to turn them into nutritious chips the pickiest of eaters would enjoy.
Serve Healthy Back-to-School Snacks for Kids
Do a dry run at home to see which snacks your children like. Incorporate their feedback to determine the best combinations and ensure they clean their plates every time.
Beth Rush is the mindfulness editor at Body+Mind. She writes about mental health during pregnancy and beyond. She also shares tips for coping with c-PTSD, PCOS, and climate anxiety. Subscribe to the Body+Mind Newsletter for more posts by Beth.
Nurtured Well, a boutique women’s mental health practice, in Towson , MD strives to serve women of all stages and ages. Reach out to learn more about how we can help you.